Texas has been hit by eight category four or above hurricanes (> 130 MPH winds) since 1850. The last one was Hurricane Carla in 1961. By contrast, Texas was hit by three category four hurricanes between 1915 and 1919.

Texas was hit by devastating hurricanes in 1886 and 1900, which wiped out entire cities and killed more than 10,000 people.

The Indianola Hurricane of 1886 destroyed the town of Indianola, Texas and as such had a significant impact on the history and ecomonic development of Texas.[1] It was the fifth hurricane of the 1886 Atlantic huuricane season and one of the most intense hurricanes ever to hit the United States.

The Hurricane of 1900 made landfall on September 8, 1900, in the city of Galveston, Texas, in the United States.[1] It had estimated winds of 145 miles per hour (233 km/h) at landfall, making it a Category 4 storm on the Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale.[2] It was the deadliest hurricane in US history, and the second costliest hurricane in U.S. history based on the dollar’s 2005 value (to compare costs with those of Hurricane Katrina and others).

One Response to Violent Texas Hurricanes Used To Be Much More Common

Although Allen in 1980 weakened to a Cat III just before Texas landfall, it deserves honorable mention. It became a Cat V three times in 11 days, and broke a fierce drought. Until Allen, Texas had 36 days of 100+ degrees F.